Paul on KD trade — “He absolutely makes them contenders” but who won: Rockets or Suns? | SPEAK

Paul on KD trade — “He absolutely makes them contenders” but who won: Rockets or Suns? | SPEAK

paul does Durant make Houston a legit title contender
he absolutely makes them a title contender cuz a team I saw this year well coached from EA from the young court that they have when I watch them they’re they’re they’re very disciplined they play great defense they they needed a star there now I don’t know how much KD has left in the tank uh to carry this young Rockets team but he’s going to certainly have a lot of help and he can be a guy down the stretch that you can go to they ended up number two in the West and you add a KD to that while taking away Jaylen Green and and of course uh Dylan Brooks who was you know a heartbeat to their team i got to believe he does you know I think they still going to maintain their depth they have Junior over there uh coming off Jabari Jr coming off their bench or may start you still have uh Aquaman he’s still there uh
Stephen
Stephen Adams you still got him and a couple other young pieces so you know as far as when I look at the temperature in the West they’re up there in the in the uh they’re up in the mix they’re they’re going to be in my top four I believe yeah i you know at first I had to think about it because when we talked about it I originally went away from it saying “No I don’t think so.”
Mhm but then as I started thinking about over the last hour or so it it feels like he could make him a contender because they swapped out Dylan Brooks and then the young Jaylen Green KD is an upgrade from that even if you combine them two together that’s a that’s a major upgrade here’s a dude no matter what age he is he’s still dropping 26 on your head night in and night out you know his consistency is the key point for them now when you start talking about you know is he a is he a voice leader guy type that’s not who he is so they got to try to figure out where do they get that from does it come from EA and the bench because that’s just not who he is as a player he just wants to play basketball help his team try to win um but like Paul said they got players still they young they got some some juice they ready to go i just think that in terms of being a like one of them real strong contenders I don’t know that they gonna be that strong but I think they could be if he just hits on all cylinders and erase that Brooklyn stuff erase that Phoenix stuff out of his mind and get with Eay somebody who coached him at Brooklyn and he has an a relationship with and an understanding they could wind up shocking all of us and find themselves in a position that many of us probably think they wouldn’t be in the leadership is going to come from Fred Vanble Vleet who has the the ability to say to KD I I saw you in the finals and took one from you so I know how to get this done as well as as well as you do i’ve got a ring to my name and that’s what he’s that’s that’s the role that he served with the Rockets but no I don’t think that he he makes them a title contender he makes them better for sure but to say that they were the second best team in the West they had the second best record they were 52 wins they were 16 games behind Oklahoma City and they were only four games ahead of eighth place the eighth place Memphis Grizzlies so it’s not like they were a dominant team in the regular season in the way we look at Oklahoma City or even Cleveland uh over over in the Eastern Conference um he’s exactly what they need as far as a go-to and I would say that he makes them a more dangerous playoff team uh but regular season you lose two guys like Jaylen Green and Dylan Brooks who were very good regular season players they just got exposed in the postseason so uh does he make them better yes can he get them further in the postseason yes are they going to be the second best team in the Western Conference and the biggest threat to Oklahoma City i would still give that to the Denver Nuggets and that’s actually the team to me that was the ideal team for him to go to if he’s dictating where he’s going to go he’d be closer to a ring going to the Nuggets than he would have to Houston
see I think he does make them a legit title contender because as much as we think the West is harder than the East and I do think that the the West is deeper than the East there’s been a different champion for seven straight years in the NBA so I I don’t even want to start talking about dynasties or repeats or any of that stuff it’s just it’s not it’s it doesn’t happen anymore like there’s
hasn’t happened
it hasn’t happened in seven years that’s that’s a pretty legitimate amount of time so the Thunder have a lot to prove if we’re talking about like what they’re going to do next not taking like it’s they should enjoy every second of this NBA championship but when we’re talking about what the Rockets can do and if they’re a contender I think they’re absolutely a contender i know that they weren’t necessarily the second best team in the West but who’s who’s truly scary take OKC the current champions out of it who’s truly scary in the West right now who makes you nervous lakers
no no
denver
denver no
Denver they don’t They don’t They
Denver needs some help
they need They need a little bit help
they need to get their infrastructure together
all right but are we comparing them to the Houston Rockets like who do you who do you favor between those two
i’m looking at the matchups i’m taking the Rockets over Denver right now in the matchups when I look at the matchups listen you got an up andcoming star in Aman Thompson he could be an all-star as early as next year sangun is already an allstar durant is still an allstar that’s three allstars right there with Van Van Valle the ultimate role player and then you got Jabari Jr he to me he got star potential he got star potential and then they got the uh the young backup point guard from Kentucky i forget his name uh what’s his name
uh Aaron Holiday or um
no
um
Kentucky the the the draft pick they drafted
right there
um
I can’t even
oh Shepard
oh Shepard yeah yeah sheepard and then they have uh
he didn’t play that much
no but he’s gonna play next year i forgot about him
yeah but he’s a
they have a solid roster and solid role players and they have a good coach and and not that they ended up being the second best team in the West when we got to the postseason but they did have a great regular season and added someone with a with who who we already know what Kevin Durant is so I I’m I’m more saying if we’re talking about who the contenders are in the West because I I think there’s just a little bit there’s a tiny little bit of propaganda being uh fed out there about the Western Conference and then when we really look
right
when we really look Minnesota overall was kind of disappointing when we’re talking about at least what happened in the in the Western Conference Finals
they still could go they just they got to get a couple pieces too
they could but everything everything that we’re talking about here outside of OKC because OKC just won the championship and had an all-time great season so let’s just take them out of it
everyone else in the West is a could maybe needs a piece little unsure maybe needs to adjust here are we positive they have the right coach so if we’re talking about whether the KD makes the Rockets a legit title contender if we’re just focusing on what they can do in the Western Conference I think absolutely
if we’re saying there’s six or seven title contenders in the Western Conference
I think there are because there’s not that many that are you going to put your your mortgage on on anybody other than OKC right now in the West
uh no and maybe not maybe not OKC no I think it’s I think it’s wide open i think this is my concern is 52 win team take out two pieces and perhaps most important KD couldn’t move the needle with Phoenix
kd couldn’t even get them to the layoffs or the playin
but maybe that Phoenix
that type of three-headed monster didn’t doesn’t work for him okay but still you’re KD if you’re if you’re if you’re everything that we’re saying Kevin Durant is and capable of being and he and the numbers that he had just didn’t do anything like I I’ve seen great players take at least get to the plays Kevin Garnett did it year after year after year there’s no question that last season was a disappointment and and I think the Suns overall very much learned their lesson that that’s not the way that you can build a winning team in this NBA but what what are the spaces that Kevin Durant has thrived in the most teams with good culture established leadership good coaching
yeah I’m with you
i think that I can see it i can see it as the model um I guess when I think of title contender I think of like four or five teams in the entire league that I put in that category it’s hard for me at at this stage if we want to look at there’s five or six potential teams in the Western Conference then I’m I’m more open to you you
think in the Western Conference right now so OKC Minnesota
Denver OKC Minnesota
that’s it
yeah okay
pretty much everybody else I’ve got a bigger question mark with to like I don’t know what the Warriors are going to turn Jonathan Kaminga in assuming that they’re going to move him
if they can get somebody who can contribute and they’ve got Jimmy Butler from the beginning of the year staying healthy
clippers know uh they they they’ve got to make some changes they need a point guard you know Harden is the point guard
he’s up though right
yeah I think he is
yeah I think he’s up i just think the better way to say it is the West is wide open
yeah the Westide open
so if that’s the case then I think the Rockets are in there
rockets master youth and athleticism coaching is there
they’re only They will get better
they’re going to be better i I truly believe they will be better
so who won the KD trade the Rockets or Sunsaw i think if you saying shortterm the Rockets definitely won because this puts them in contention for the next couple years i believe and sometimes your window opportunity is only open for three four years you know we we’re not all fortunate to have windows of opportunity last as long as the Golden State Warriors or the San Antonio Spurs you know we watched the Miami Heat their their window was four years i could see that happening with Rockets to where they have a four-year window our our ours was four years when we got together we say guys our window’s four years
so whatever we can do in that and you got to be good and you got to be lucky you got to stay away from the injury bugs so short term it’s the Rockets but long term I feel like Phoenix can build some pieces around Jaylen Green the draft pick uh I also would probably trade Booker and go young all the way since Booker start he’s in his prime and probably not go win as as projected see if I can get another few pieces for Booker so long term it’ll Phoenix
yeah it it’s it’s Phoenix long-term and short two-year window in Houston this is why they did that they they want to win right now
they not thinking four years from now you know cuz four years from now KD will be damn near 40 years old
so or maybe he will what is he 37 now
37 he’ll be 37 this season
so he’ll be into getting close and into the 40 year no not at all they So in in all in all I think Phoenix wins because they get young they got a couple picks in the second round picks or whatever you never they may be able to package him up and find something else but I kind of agree with Paul maybe they look to get even younger if somebody want to grab Booker and bring him along and give him something for him in terms of value but it’s definitely it’s definitely long-term is Phoenix because it’s a short-term situation in Houston i think it’s to be determined uh I I’d lean rockets in the media because they it he automatically makes them better yeah that’s why they did it
did they have to um assure him of an extension and what’s that extension look like cuz that’s all that’s the price on the back but I need all mine
okay okay well that’s a price that’s a price depending on KD staying healthy that may bite you on the backside
and then the other part is with Phoenix is is what are you turning Jaylen Green and Dylan Brooks into yeah exactly rick continue to go seriously
continue to go
seriously no you got to turn I don’t expect that Brooks and Jaylen Green were were acquired to be part of the team i feel like I’m having two conversations here oh
I think it’s too soon to tell uh it’ll it’ll depends on what I think Jaylen Green ends up being obviously KD is going to be 37 this season so this is this is a small window for the Rockets to take advantage of and I think that’s good because as we’re saying there’s a new champion every there’s been a new champion every single year for the last seven years in the NBA this idea that you’re automatically just because you won going to repeat or get back to the finals or build on some sort of dynasty it’s it’s really difficult to do and because of that I think there’s a lot more parity and it’s wide open for everyone health obviously plays a huge factor there’s a lot of teams that we expected to be competing at a high level that next year will not be doing that because of major injuries yeah and that’s across the board so I I think there’s a lot that they can do if they do end up staying healthy but it’s too soon uh in in totality maybe in three years years we’ll end up knowing who actually wants to trade
paul how do you see Alpurn Senon and KD playing together i feel like they play I feel like they play two different rhythms well I like KD with him with Sangon in a half court setting see they’re going to be they’re going to be they’re going to be a great transition team because they have athletes on the perimeter and they going to be a great half court team i think they’re going to work well together i mean they probably won’t be putting pick and rolls too much but uh playing off on one another dribble handoffs things of that nature getting switches taking advantage of mismanage
uh yeah that that’ll be a great tandle subscribe here to get the latest from Speak and go watch a few segments from our other shows on FS1

Joy Taylor, Keyshawn Johnson, Paul Pierce, and Ric Bucher debate whether Kevin Durant makes the Houston Rockets legitimate title contenders after his trade. They break down who won the Kevin Durant trade — the Houston Rockets or the Phoenix Suns — and discuss the implications for both franchises.

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Paul on KD trade — “He absolutely makes them contenders” but who won: Rockets or Suns? | SPEAK
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